Vaughan Lee vs. Chris Cariaso
I won't pretend that I've ever heard of Vaughan Lee but I looked over his record and some of his fights and if he were fighting another nobody I'd give him a chance, but facing Chris Cariaso I don't see him being successful in his octagon debut. Cariaso is a tough former Strikeforce and WEC fighter who most recently lost a spilt decision to Michael McDonald in a great war. His only losses are to tough competition and I don't see him having too much trouble with Lee and his tendencies to get caught in submissions, plus he's a Bay Area boy so I have to back him.
Cariaso by Submission(Rear Naked Choke)
John Maguire vs. Justin Edwards
Another man in his Debut, John Maguire is cocky little brit coming in on a 5 fight win streak as the UCMMA welterweight champion, but I don't see him being too happy for long when he comes in against TUF vet Justin Edwards. Maguire has managed to end alot of his fights by submission and he has a nice record of 16-3 but I don't think he's going to be able to handle the big lights of the UFC and he'll choke. Edwards came off the Ultimate Fighter to lose a close split decision to Clay Harviston on the finale, but after picked up a win at Fight Night:Ellenburger vs Sheilds against Jorge Lopez. Edwards is a solid welter and he's very well rounded, I see Maguire not being able to handle the grandest stage in MMA and Edwards capitolizing with a submission or TKO.
Edwards by Submission(Guillotine Choke)
Che Mills vs. Chris Cope
WOOOOO! Sorry I couldnt help myself, I really like Chris Cope, his antics and his love of pro wrestling. This one looks like a great fight to me, both guys are extremely fun to watch and it's a hard one to call for me. Cope was good on The Ultimate Fighter and looked ten times better in his dominant win over Chuck Oneal on the TUF finale, and if he was facing anyone other than Che Mills I would say he has this in the bag, but Mills is one tough SOB. You probably haven't heard of this guy but he is one of the better brits in the smaller promotions right now, and now he's making his UFC debut on his home turf, that is a scary thing for Cope, hell anyone who's knocked out Marius Zaromskis twice is scary. I would love to see Cope win here but I see Mills pulling this off with either a TKO or decision, but it's gonna be a war.
Mills by Decision
Rob Broughton vs. Philip De Fries
We most recently saw Broughton lose a very slow and gassed fight against Travis Browne at UFC 135, he didn't look impressive but the fact that he hung in there with a tough guy like Browne does say something for his durability. He's a decently rounded guy with the ability to end it on the feet with his toaster sized hands or his ground game that has helped him pick up 4 wins. However he's going in there against a UFC newcomer and fellow brit who likely has the tools to put him away. Philip De Fries is probably the hottest young british heavyweight in MMA, he has exceptional submissions and I will not be surprised if he destroys Broughton with his overwhelming BJJ. He has looked awesome in his first 7 fights that he has finished all but one in the first round by submission, hopefully he can still deliver the same staggering results in the UFC, I'm hoping and betting that he can in this fight.
De Fries by Submission(D'arce Choke)
Michihiro Omigawa vs. Jason Young
Oh Omigawa, I loved this guy in Japan but just has not been able to find his groove here in the UFC. Hopefully this step down in competition will help give him a chance to pick up a win, no disrespect to Young but he is outmatched in this fight, the only reason Omigawa has had such a rough time in the UFC is his last two fights were against Chad Mendez and Darren Elkins. Young is a decent little slugger from the UK but his weak TD defense is going to get attacked my Michihiro and his Judo, and he will either take the decision or submit him.
Omigawa by Decision
Cyrille Diabate vs. Anthony Perosh
This fight will be interesting, Diabate is a somewhat dangerous striker going up against a guy who has very limited striking, but Perosh is pretty much a straight jits guy and Diabate doesn't have much in the ground area. Diabate has taken out the likes of Luiz Can and Steve Cantwell in the UFC while Persosh submitted a nobody in Tom Blackledge after losing his his return fight in the octagon against Mirko Cro Cop. Diabate has decent enough take down defense and I'm thinking that he'll avoid the ground, but I don't see him finishing Perosh, even though Perosh has horrible stand up he has a pretty good chin and he'll clinch up when he gets hurt.
Diabate by Decision
Terry Etim vs. Eddie Faaloloto
Terry Etim was once one of the hottest young prospects in the UFC’s lightweight Division, strange to think it wasn’t that long ago. But a 9 month layoff due to an injury sustained in his armbar loss to Rafael Dos Anjos has folks scratching their heads trying to remember who he is. Etim is someone to be remembered though, he has great cardio and is a legitimate threat on the ground and the feet. In his return tomorrow night he faces a tough Hawaiian in Eddie Faaloloto, a young gun who may not have the best records but he’s tough as nails and has been given tough competition so early in his career. After only two professional fights he was thrown into the WEC where he was TKO’d by Anthony Njkouani and in his UFC debut he was again TKO’d by TUF 12 finalist Michael Johnson. Unfortunatly for him it seems he’s being fed to the dogs again as he faces Etim in his 5th professional fight.
Etim by TKO
Thiago Alves vs. Papy Abedi
Before I say anything about the actual fight here I just want to say that today at the weigh ins Thiago Alves came in heavy yet again, and whether he loses or not Dana needs to force him to move to Middleweight because this shit is getting old. On the fight now, Alves may have weight problems but I love watching him fight and he does so just like his nickname, like a Pitbull. He's coming in against highly touted rookie Papy Abedi, who has amassed a record of 8 wins with no losses and all but one being finished by TKO or Guillotine. Even though he is coming in with alot of hype I don't see him taking out Alves, who needs the win after losing a tough decision to Rick Story.
Alves by Decision
Brad Pickett vs. Renan "Barao"
Pickett is a guy that I have been waiting a long time to see make his UFC debut since the fall of WEC, but his first fight is not going to be an easy one as he's coming in against a guy who is on a 26 fight win streak. Pickett is one of the guys from the WEC that I wanted to see make the transition to the UFC most, he's extremely entertaining and he's tough as nails. He finished off his time in the WEC with a decision win over Ivan Menjivar in the final fight card of the company's history. His competition is no stranger to his old home either, on top of his incredible win streak he went 2-0 in the WEC, defeating Chris Cariaso on the final card as well. Since then he has made his UFC debut defeating Cole Escovedo my unanimous decision at UFC 130. But this fight should be the biggest test in either of their careers as they meet tomorrow night. Both men are super talented and can hang on the feet and the ground, I expect an all out war by these guys but in the end I think Pickett comes out on top.
Pickett by Decision
Chris Leben vs Mark Munoz
Now this is a fight that I am very excited for, a battle for possibly the next shot at the MW title, this is a fight that is pretty much guaranteed to be a war. Anyone who knows Chris Leben knows that the man is the epitome of a slugger, he wades in and thows leather and he doesn't mind taking a few himself but the bottom line is that if you stand with him and your name is not Brian Stann or Anderson Silva he will murder you. Not only is he a major threat on the feet but he showed in his fight with Yoshihiro Akiyama that he can pull off a nice submission as well when he Triangled him at UFC 116, he's very hungry and coming off a quick KO over MMA legend Wanderlei Silva so watch out. But the man that he's facing tomorrow night will not back down from slugging and he has the wrestling pedigree to take him down and control him if he choses to do so. He is on a three fight win streak with the likes of CB Dolloway, Aaron Simpson and Demian Maiia on his hit list, and to top it off he's been training at Blackhouse to improve all aspects of his game, especially his striking and BJJ so look be ready to see the best Mark Munoz we've ever seen. I like both guys alot but I would really like to see what Munoz can do if he gets past Leben, so in my heart I'm going with him. However I feel like he might make the mistake of playing into Leben's game and get clipped, so officially I'll take Leben.
Leben by KO
Bonus Predictions
Knockout Of The Night-Chris Leben
Submission Of The Night-Philip De Fries
Fight Of The Night-Pickett vs Barao
